How I Beat a Bully and Learned to Stand Up for Myself
Growing up, life wasn’t exactly straightforward. I lost my dad when I was seven, and my mom, a teacher, did her best to raise me and my siblings. We lived in two tiny grass tukuls at the school where she worked. I didn’t realize how poor we were until I came of age. Everyone around […]
Managing Staff in Conflict Zones and the Hidden Price of Doing the Right Thing; Upholding Accountability.
Managing a team in conflict zones can be a different ball game depending on the context and organization. Forget about the usual office politics or the daily “Did you sign the form?” issues. Here, firing someone can quickly escalate from an HR matter to something that threatens your safety. Sometimes, doing the right thing requires […]
Surviving the Rules of the Gun: Lessons on Power and Resilience from South Sudan
orking in South Sudan taught me lessons about power, authority, and survival that I’ll never forget. Some moments were uncomfortable, others eye-opening, but all were crucial in helping me understand working in the context of conflict. Growing up in Uganda in the 1990s, my view of soldiers was shaped by fear. Soldiers were figures of […]
Turning the Tide: A Young Manager’s Journey to Revitalize an Underperforming Project in South Sudan
hen I landed in Kuajok, Warrap State, South Sudan, in March 2015, I had no idea what awaited me. The project I was stepping into, funded by the World Bank, was meant to improve local governance and service delivery. However, instead of having a project ready to launch, I faced many problems. It was months […]
Snakes in the Grass: Tales from South Sudan
People always say humanitarian work is full of sacrifices. But let me tell you, you don’t get what that means until you’re out in the field, deep in a place like South Sudan. I spent over five years working in South Sudan with three different organizations and trust me, it’s a place where challenges are […]
The Great Sacred Heart Secondary School Escape: How I Got Arrested for Flirting
n 1998, I joined Bishop Angelo Negri College in Gulu, Uganda. I was an adolescent. Little did I know that my adolescent adventures would soon lead me to a police arrest at a girls’ school, a shirtless ‘sentence’, and an unforgettable lesson. Bishop Angelo Negri College is a boy boarding school owned by the catholic […]
The Unforgettable Journey: A Tale of Bladders and Bottles
In 2005, my friends, cousin, and I travelled from Gulu, Uganda, to Kampala to attend my cousin Douglas’s graduation party. He had just graduated from Makerere University Business School with a bachelor’s degree, and we were excited to celebrate this significant milestone with him. The party took place at our uncle’s home in Ntinda, and […]
Acholi needs reconciliation commission to heal
While campaigning in Gulu Town in November, former Makerere University vice chancellor and independent presidential candidate, Prof Venansius Baryamureeba, promised to institute a truth and reconciliation commission to investigate atrocities committed in northern Uganda. Despite the prevailing peace in the region, some questions continue to be asked by victims of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA)-UPDF […]
Government lacks commitment to UPE
Written by Alex Okello Ouma At Okol primary school in Omot sub-county in Pader, studying under the tree is all but normal to an estimated 300 pupils. According to the head teacher, Mr. Omech Ben Robert, some pupils walk for over 5 kilometers to and fro school every day because of their desire and willingness […]
International Criminal Court (ICC) and Uganda; who should try Dominic Ongwen?
January 10, 2015 Last week, news emerged that one of LRA’s top leaders, Dominic Ogwen, who was indicted and is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity and war crimes, was captured by Seleka rebels in Central Africa Republic and handed over to US Forces. There were news reports that US […]